Apparatus and method for protecting data recorded on a storage medium

• US 20040186971A1
• Filed: 01/20/2004
• Published: 09/23/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: VALT X Technologies Incorporated
• Original Assignee: VALT X Technologies Incorporated
• Inventors: Leung, Tony Kwok, Meharchand, Dennis
• Granted Patent: US 7,370,165 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/163
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/145 the protection being virtual, e.g. for virtual blocks or segments before a translation mechanism
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/78 to assure secure storage of data address-based protection against unauthorised use of memory G06F12/14; record carriers for use with machines and with at least a part designed to carry digital markings G06K19/00

Abstract

A controller for protecting data on a data storage medium is disclosed. A single physical data storage device is divided into a protected data space, a virtual data space and an unprotected data space in an installation mode. Subsequently, the protected and unprotected data space are presented as two separate physical data storage devices and the existence of virtual data space is concealed. The two data storage devices are respectively represented as having capacity equal to that of the protected and unprotected data space only. A set of protected data (which may include software and data) is initially installed in the protected data space. During use, data transmitted to the controller for recording in the data storage space is recorded only in the virtual data space. Data may be read from either the protected data space or the virtual data space, depending on whether the virtual data space contains newer data. In one embodiment, the contents of the virtual data space are discarded at the beginning of each session of the computing system in which the controller is installed. In another embodiment, the virtual data space is discarded only when the controller is instructed to do so and the contents of the virtual data space may be made permanent by copying them to the protected data space. The protected data space and virtual data space may be located on different data storage devices. The controller may also receive read data and write data requests for an unprotected data space, which may be used to record data permanently, independent of the protected and virtual data spaces.

Claims

1. A method of protecting protected data recorded on a data storage medium, comprising the steps of:

(a) in a configuration mode;

(i) dividing a single physical storage device into a protected data space, a virtual data space and an unprotected data space.

(b) in an installation mode;

(i) presenting the protected and unprotected data space as two separate physical devices.

(ii) concealing the existence of virtual data space.

(iii) recording the protected data in the protected data space.

(c) in a protect mode;

(i) present the virtual and unprotected data space as two separate physical devices.

(ii) concealing the existence of protected data space.

(iii) receiving a read data request from a processor and responding to the read data request by;

(1) if the requested read data is recorded in the virtual data space, reading the requested read data from the virtual data space and transmitting the read data to the processor;

(2) if the requested read data is not recorded in the virtual data space, reading the requested read data from the real data space and transmitting the read data to the processor.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein step (c)(ii) includes the step of recording the requested read data in the virtual data space.

3. The method of claim 1 further including the step of:

(d) in the protect mode, receiving a write data request from the processor and responding to the write data request by;

(i) recording the write data in the virtual data space.

4. A method of protecting protected data recorded on a data storage medium, comprising the steps of:

(a) in a configuration mode, dividing the data storage medium into at least a protected data space and a virtual data space;

(b) in an installation mode, recording the protected data in the protected data space;

(c) in a protect mode, receiving a read data request from a processor and responding to the read data request by;

(i) if the requested read data is recorded in the virtual data space, reading the requested read data from the virtual data space and transmitting the read data to the processor;

(ii) if the requested read data is not recorded in the virtual data space, reading the requested read data from the protected data space and transmitting the read data to the processor.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein step (c)(ii) include the step of recording the requested read data in the virtual data space.

6. The method of claim 4 further including the step of:

(d) in the protect mode, receiving a write data request from the processor and responding to the write data request by;

(i) recording the write data in the virtual data space.

7. The method of claim 4 wherein the controller is coupled to a processor, and wherein, during steps (b) and (c), the controller conceals the virtual data space from said processor.

8. The method of claim 4 wherein said protected data space is comprised of a plurality of protected blocks and wherein the virtual data space is comprised of a plurality of virtual blocks and wherein each of the protected blocks corresponds to one virtual block.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein during step c(ii), the requested read data is read from one or more protected blocks and wherein substep (c)(ii) further includes step of copying the read data into one or more virtual blocks corresponding to the one or more protected blocks.

10. The method of claim 4 wherein said controller includes a virtual block usage table having an entry corresponding to each of said virtual blocks for tracking whether each said virtual block contains valid data.

11. A method of protecting protected data comprising:

(a) providing a protected data space having a plurality of virtual protected blocks;

(b) providing a virtual data space having a plurality of virtual blocks for recording virtual data, wherein each of the protected blocks corresponds to one of the virtual blocks;

(c) recording said protected data in one or more of said protected blocks;

(d) identifying each of said virtual blocks as not containing valid virtual data;

(d) processing read data requests from a processor by;

(i) determining one or more specific protected blocks in which the read data may be recorded;

(ii) determining one or more specific virtual blocks which correspond to the one or more specific protected blocks;

(ii) determining whether the one or more specific virtual blocks contain valid virtual data;

(iii) if the one or more specific virtual blocks contain valid virtual data, then reading the requested read data from the one or more specific virtual blocks and transmitting it to the processor,

(iv) if the one or more specific virtual blocks does not contain valid virtual data, then reading the requested read data from the one or more specific protected blocks and transmitting it to the processor;

(e) processing write data requests from the processor by;

(i) selecting one or more virtual blocks;

(ii) recording the write data in the one or more selected virtual blocks;

(iii) identifying the one or more selected virtual blocks as containing valid virtual data.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein said protected data space and said virtual data space are provided in the same data storage device.

13. The method of claim 11 wherein said protected data space and said virtual data space are provided in one disk drive.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein said protected data space is provided in a first partition on said disk drive and wherein said virtual data space is provided in a second partition on said disk drive.

15. The method of claim 11 wherein said one disk drive is an IDE-type hard disk drive.